A long time since
by Corack252
Summary: There is a new addition to the crew; a woman in need of aid. All of a sudden the boys of the crew begin acting stranger than usual, inticed by the attractive female. But why do they all see her differently?
1. Chapter 1

**Part I**

Crichton awoke to a stinging sensation in his eyes. He immediately clenched his eyelids and rubbed at them with his thumb and forefinger. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and held his head in his hands. Slight red patches had begun to develop around his eyes and he could feel a small amount of swelling. What was it this time? The pollen of some intergalactic plant? The chilli powder of some otherworldly Con Carne? Whatever it was, his body was not taking it very well. It felt like he was having a mild allergic reaction. Of course it was only a matter of time. Going into the deep reaches of space without any inoculations; he was surprised he had lasted this long.

He did not move for several minutes, and it was only when he heard the telltale sound of a hovering seat that he forced his eyelids to part. Who knew what Rygel would do with his stuff if he knew he was half blind.

Rygel grumbled when he rounded the corner and saw the state John was in. "You think you feel bad?"

John didn't have the energy to reply to the Hynerian with a sarcastic comment.

"Ever since that Enustas girl came aboard, I've felt exceedingly ill." It seemed that the Rygel was also having some kind of reaction. Crichton did not realise the severity of it until the Hynerian let off several batches of Helium, one after the other. By this point in time, John had gotten used to the odd release or two, but this was something else.

And then something clicked in his mind. "Enustas? Who's Enustas?" John's voice was extremely high pitched; an effect of excessive helium intake. He managed to lift his head now as some of his energy had been replenished.

"Zhaan and Chiana picked her up from the planet they just visited," Rygel murmured.

"They've been down to a planet! How much have I missed? How long have I been asleep?" he cried. He stood abruptly and almost toppled over, but he was able to balance himself after a few moments of swaying.

Rygel's voice perked up a bit. "Don't ask me. It's not my job to count how many arns sleep you get!"

"In your case Sparky, it could be counted as a rhetorical question." Crichton began taking a few steps towards the door, but he was unable to walk in a straight line.

Rygel just looked up at the human. He obviously didn't understand the word 'rhetorical'. "Well, I feel terrible. I'm off to my room to die in peace." He started floating away, before stopping and turning once again to John. "Should I actually die, don't touch my carcass with your unworthy hands." He turned and made his way down the corridor, calling back to Crichton, "and don't touch my stuff either!"

John couldn't help but laugh to himself over the Hynerian's paranoia. Not everyone was like him; not everyone insisted on taking other peoples' things. He continued his chuckling as he walked down the corridor in the opposite direction.

After encountering no one for a while, Crichton decided to find out where the rest of the crew was. "Pilot, where is everyone?"

"Oh, Crichton! You're up then," said the unmistakable voice of Pilot.

"Yeah, how long was I out?" he said as he passed through the cargo bay. There was no one there either.

"At least ten arns. You sounded extremely tired when last I spoke with you."

Strange; Crichton could not remember speaking with him. He must have been exhausted. "Anyway Pilot, going back to my first question, where is everyone?"

"D'Argo is just checking on a mechanical fault in the upper tier. Rygel as you may know has retired to him room. Officer Sun, Zhaan and Chiana are stationed on the bridge with the new arrival."

"Okay, thanks Pilot." Again he had to rub his eyes. "Pilot, have you picked up any anomalies in the air by any chance?"

"I'm not sure. I can run a scan if you wish. But, why do you ask?" he asked innocently.

"I don't know. My eyes are stinging like hell. It feels like I may be having a nasty reaction to something."

"Yes, Rygel mentioned something similar. He seems to believe it has something to do with the Laxae, Zhaan and Chiana returned with. "

"How could it be? She's not another plant is she?" John said cautiously.

"I don't believe so."

"Okay then Pilot. Run that scan and get back to me with what you find." And with that the connection was cut.

Now that he knew where he was going, it didn't take him long to reach the door to the bridge and pass through it. Just as Pilot had said, Aeryn, Zhaan and Chiana were there, along with another creature he did not recognise. The first thing John noticed about her was her attractiveness. She looked Human or Sabacean, but there was something about her which told him she was neither, something he couldn't quite pinpoint. She had long brown hair, beautiful green eyes, and a curved figure. She wore a tight, leather bodysuit which showed off her body well; why would she wear something so sexually seductive? She smiled at him as he came in, a smile which almost made his knees buckle under him.

The other females in the room stared at John, and at the dopey expression he was displaying. He had forgotten about the stinging his eyes. He could not bring himself to blink and disrupt his view of this utter beauty.

Zhaan walked over to him and blocked his line of sight. The trance for broken, for a time; he was able to think clearly.

"What is the matter, John?" she asked in her usual, calming tone.

"Who is she?" His eyes were directed at the floor. He felt deterred from looking at any other woman.

"A poor, old woman we picked up on the planet below."

"Old!" he whispered with emphasis.

"Yes. She asks that we may take her to the nearest commerce planet and drop her there, so she can earn herself a living. There was very little for anyone to do on her planet, let alone make enough money to live comfortably."

John was confused. Why were they saying she was old when she was so blatantly younger than he was? It was at that point that the stinging in his eyes returned. He closed them and rubbed viciously. "Sorry, I'm not feeling so well."

"Go back to your chamber John. Perhaps you will feel better later." Zhaan gave John a slight nudge in the direction of the door and John took the hint. He got out of the room and made his way back to his quarters.

"Sorry about that. That one's a bit weird at times." Aeryn then corrected herself, "all the time in fact."

"No problem. I see such cases often," Enustas replied in a frail voice, and when no one was looking in her direction, she smiled slyly to herself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Part II**

On his way back to his room, John was spoken to by Pilot. "Commander Crichton?"

"Yes Pilot? Did you complete that scan?" His eyes were gradually getting better; he was now able to walk in a straight line rather than stumble all over the place.

"Yes I did."

John waited for a reply, and when he didn't get one, he forced one. "And? What did you find?"

"We picked up nothing. There are no abnormalities in the air."

This was a slight relief, but it also meant that he was still in search of an answer for his and Rygel's peculiar conditions, even if the effects _were_ beginning to subside. "Okay, thanks Pilot."

"Of course, Crichton," and the link went dead.

After a few minutes of walking through the empty corridors of Moya, Crichton almost tripped up when a line of DRDs passed right across the floor, ignoring the fact that he was walking there. He didn't want to disturb Pilot again, but this was strange behaviour for the little machines. They usually acknowledged the presence of a member of the crew rather than disregarding it. Odd, but as Crichton was still not feeling one hundred percent, he didn't wish to make a fuss.

A short while later when he had almost reached the door of his chamber, he was intercepted by the Luxan warrior known as Ka D'Argo. He stepped in line beside John and walked with him the rest of the way to his quarters.

"You seen that woman the others brought on board?" he asked giddily.

"Yes, yes I did." _God_, how did he know D'Argo would mention her?

"Beautiful, isn't she?" He stopped at the door of Crichton's room and allowed him to go inside alone.

"I had a feeling you would like her, even if she is of a different species." John had taken a seat on the side of his bed and prepared to take a nap; he needed a little more recuperation.

D'Argo laughed. "Yeah, but even so she looks exactly like a Luxan."

John frowned. Eh? Was he mad? She looked nothing like a Luxan; she looked human. Perhaps he was misinterpreting what D'Argo was saying. Even though he had slept for hours, he still felt drained of all his energy. His brain probably couldn't take in fully what the warrior was saying. "Yeah, anyway I'm going to get some rest so could you close the door on the way out, thanks." He said nothing else after swinging his legs onto the bed and shutting his aching eyes.

D'Argo glared at the Human, but he did as he was asked nevertheless. With the door shut, he strode menacingly back down the corridor and went to see if there were any more jobs Pilot needed doing.

Meanwhile, Rygel was floating around his chamber on his throne. His illness had also begun to subside. He was no longer releasing as much gas as before, but there was still a build-up of mucus within his nostrils; he found it hard to breathe. Ever since he had left Crichton, he had been mumbling and cursing away to himself. He never took illness very well. It was not a common thing in the royalty of the Hynerian Empire.

"Blasted body! Either die or don't die, make up you mind," he was saying when his door opened. He turned to find another Hynerian staring back at him. It was a female; that much he could tell. She did not have a chair to float about on, so she used her feet. But even so, she was taller than the average Hynerian. Rygel lowered his seat slightly so they could really speak with her face to face.

"You must be that Enustas they were talking about. You're a Hynerian! But they told me you were a Lax…"

"I am a Laxae!" she said before he could go on.

"Then your species must be very closely related to ours." He then remembered his manners. "Allow me to introduce myself." He cleared his throat before going on. "I am Dominar Ry…"

"…Rygel the Sixteenth of the Hynerian Empire. They told me about you."

"Did they? How rude of them!"

The female laughed sweetly, and it was at this point that Rygel fully took in her immense beauty. Though she was of a different race, she appealed to him more than any of his other Hynerian wives. "Perhaps you could stay here a while, my dear," he pleaded with her.

"I'm afraid I only came to meet you, a Hynerian of such power and greatness. It was an honour." She began making her way back out into the corridor.

""Do come by again!" he called out but he got no reply. He let out a sigh of sorrow as she disappeared from view.


	3. Chapter 3

**Part III**

Crichton woke to the smell of burning. His eyes no longer felt sore, so he opened them immediately. What he saw explained the smell. There were a couple of DRDs clamped to the ceiling, using their lasers to cut through the organic material of the hull. He watched them for a while, savouring the fact that he was watching other people, or robots, do work rather than the other way around. It was only after tracing the lines of their cuts that he noticed they were cutting a square section which seemed to be bending towards him.

The two red beams had almost connected. As soon as they did so, the square would be complete. It was not until the very last moment that he realised the danger he was in. The beams connected. "Oh sh…" he cried as he rolled off his bed and onto the floor, just as the panel came flying downwards, flattening his bed.

John stared at the panel wide-eyed, before slamming his head down on the floor. Ordinarily that would have hurt, but the adrenaline rush had halted the feeling of pain. He covered his eyes with his hands and breathed heavily with fear. After glancing at what his bed had suffered, he became aware of the fact that he had very nearly died. He looked to the DRDs which had not moved; they did not seem to care that they had almost killed a member of the crew.

"What the hell is wrong with you things today?!" he shouted at them. If they heard him, they did nothing to acknowledge him.

Crichton knew that it would be pointless to persist in interrogating the little robots; if they didn't answer the first time then they never would. He decided that it was now time to take the matter up with Pilot. He was the one who controlled them. Surely _he_ would know what was going on.

He took one last despairing look at his wrecked bed before storming out of his room. Where was he going to sleep now? Once the panel was lifted off it would not be too difficult to repair, but in the meantime he had nowhere to rest his head. Personally he hoped that Aeryn would allow him to share her room, or perhaps even the new girl, wherever she was staying.

John marched through the ship, not meeting anyone on his way to Pilot's den. It seemed totally silent, a rare thing to find aboard Moya. Another occurrence he could add to his list of strange things which had happened recently.

When he passed through the door of the den, he saw Pilot in the centre, deep in conversation with someone. As he drew closer, he saw that it was actually Enustas. Crichton immediately froze, struck limp by her dazzling beauty. The two of them noticed John shortly after and they cut short their chat. The Laxae walked towards him in a sexually suggestive manner and brushed his body with hers on her way to the exit. As soon as she passed out of view, he felt somehow calmer, liberated. Pilot on the other hand, had his eyes locked upon her all the way to the door. His expression gave away his thoughts. He was like a schoolboy, lusting after a sexually attractive woman. The daze _he_ was caught in also disappeared as soon as she had left the room.

Crichton crept closer. "Pilot? What is wrong with you?" he asked accusingly.

"Whatever do you mean, Crichton?" he replied in a tone which pathetically tried to cover up what they both already knew.

"You were staring at Enustas as if…you fancied her. Why?"

"Ahhh, she's amazing isn't she? We've been talking much about Leviathans. She seems to now a lot about them for someone who has never been bonded with one."

Things just seemed to get weirder and weirder. "Yeah anyway, what's wrong with the DRDs, Pilot?"

"Nothing," he spoke suddenly, as if the answer was an obvious one.

"Well there must be something wrong. Earlier, I almost tripped over a bunch 'cos they weren't looking where they were going. And just now, a pair of them were sawing off a piece of the hull right above my bed…where I was lying!"

"You just got in the way of their daily routine." By this time, Pilot was looking down at his controls and rotating as he pressed down on them.

"Yeah, and I suppose part of their _'daily routine' _includes cutting away at the hull for no apparent reason!" he said, noticeably agitated.

"Yes!" Pilot said angrily. "Now if you have finished telling me how to control _my _DRDs, I have much work to do. Please leave!" He turned away and said no more.

John huffed and started across the thin walkway. He stopped at the door when Pilot called out to him. "I though I should inform you that we are currently in orbit around a commerce planet. Chiana and Enustas are going down to see if it is suitable for her needs."

"Good. Now that she's gone maybe people will start talking some sense," he said and walked out of the room without delay, avoiding Pilot's statement to the contrary.


	4. Chapter 4

**Part IV**

Crichton made his way down to the food court. He had only just realised that he hadn't eaten in at least a day. His time had instead been taken up by sleep and arguing with various members of the crew, as usual. Was it his fault that he was not as competent as the others? He didn't think so.

When he reached the dining room door, it opened silently before him revealing the room. He immediately spotted Aeryn and Zhaan sitting down, eating their share of the food cubes and whatever else there was on offer. John lifted the panel and took the tray of food inside. He then went over to join the two ladies. They were already deep in conversation, so he sat a short way away so as not to interrupt them.

He looked down at his plate and grimaced. There were green things and brown things. The only thing he recognised was the food cubes, and after all this time he had no idea what _they_ were made of either. Nevertheless, his grumbling stomach egged him on and so he grabbed at the various pieces of food and stuffed them through his parted lips. He tried not to taste the flavour as it passed over his tongue, but he failed. He almost gagged; the food never usually tasted that bad. He swallowed what was already in his mouth before pushing his tray away a little.

He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned forward onto the table. His attention turned to the conversing ladies to his right.

"With any luck, Chiana will come back alone!" Aeryn was saying.

"Why? Do you dislike Enustas?" Zhaan replied quietly.

"Not in a hateful way. She just…sends shivers up my spine." Aeryn seemed to tremble as she spoke.

"How come?" Crichton butted in.

Aeryn looked around at him, and John at once flinched and turned away. It took him a moment to process what he had just done and why he had done it. Then it came to him; he found Aeryn repulsive. That was why he couldn't bear to look at her. But why? He normally found the Sebacean extremely attractive. What had changed?

Gradually he turned back around but he still did not look up at Officer Sun.

"What is the matter John?" Zhaan asked him thoughtfully. He felt her hand upon his, a feeling which comforted him. He glanced at her, but found that exactly the same thing occurred; he could gaze at her for longer than a few seconds. He found her hideous as well. He snatched his hand from beneath hers and arched his back so that he could look nowhere but at the floor. Often he had considered Zhaan to be disturbingly sexy, but no longer.

"I don't know," he said in reply to Zhaan's question.

Zhaan thought for a moment about Crichton's actions when the new girl had been around. "Has it anything to do with Enustas?" she inquired.

He began to lift his head but stopped before his reflexes did it for him. He shrugged his shoulders so slightly that neither of the girls noticed. "Possibly," he said.

Zhaan pressed on with the interrogation. "Do you not like her, John?"

John started laughing, quietly at first but it quickly escalated into a fit of chuckles. "No! No…" and then his laughing ceased, "she seems very nice," he continued with a serious tone of voice.

"Hmmm…" was all Zhaan said in reply. She turned to Aeryn and addressed her. "I find her to be a good-natured girl."

Aeryn was picking up various pieces of food and munching them down. "What exactly are we getting out of helping her?"

Zhaan had a sudden change of tone. "Must you always think of material goods?" she asked the Ex-Peacekeeper angrily.

Aeryn didn't even flinch at the Delvian's outburst of fury. She putdown the food she had in her hand and looked directly into the eyes of the Priestess. John was listening to all of this even though he looked at neither of them. "We're fugitives Zhaan! Down and out fugitives! We have very little currency and we are steadily running short on food. If we are going to continue to live aboard Moya, we need provisions!"

Zhaan looked down. She understood the Sebacean's reasoning, even though it went against many of the principles she had been taught as a Priest. "Very well. Should we find a suitable planet for the girl, we shall ask her to give whatever she can to repay us." John could hear the strain in her voice which told him that it was a very difficult thing for her to say.

Aeryn offered her no counsel. She knew it was the right thing to do. Having convinced the Priestess to go against her teachings, she got back to eating her ration of the food supply.

There was no more talking between them. With nothing else to do there, John stood up from the table and walked out of the room, leaving the girls and his uneaten food at the desk. He decided to go and see if Chiana had arrived back with Enustas; he had a craving to see her again.


	5. Chapter 5

**Part V**

As if right on cue, the huge hangar doors parted as John entered from the other side. Enustas came through first with Chiana behind her, moving suspiciously slowly. She had a glare on her face, that much John could tell, a glare which was directed at her fellow female.

John went over the welcome Enustas back to the ship with a grin which was so wide that the muscles in his neck were tense. Unfortunately for him, she completely ignored his gesture and walked past into the inner depths of the ship. His mouth relaxed into a neutral expression. He felt unwanted, like a young teenager who had just been rejected by his first crush. But why did he feel this way? He had been out with and been rejected by countless beauties in his lifetime; why was this time any different?

"Not you as well!" Chiana moaned at him.

John turned to see that the Nebari now stood no more than a metre from him; they sure were sneaky beings. "Not me what?" he asked, slightly bemused.

"The whole time we were down there, the guys were all staring at her. Frell! They normally stare at me!"

"So you really enjoy the men lusting after you twenty-four, seven?" he questioned her.

She twisted her head, just as she usually did when she didn't understand something. "Twenty-four…what?"

John laughed and shook his head when he realised his mistake; how would they understand what such a term meant? They dealt in arns and cycles, while his kind dealt in hours and years. "Doesn't matter, forget it." He started walking away, not bothering to wait for the answer to his original question.

"Where are you going?" Chiana called out after him.

"I'm going to Enustas' room!" he replied over his shoulder.

"Why? You gonna wait for her?" she said in a sexually suggestive tone of voice.

"No! Just going to see if I can find out why everyone is acting so crazy!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Part VI**

Upon entering the newest arrival's room, he noticed that nothing had been disturbed. It seemed that she had not yet used it; where had she been sleeping then? There was however a pile of possessions over in the corner, the one sign that this room had actually been lived in. He went over and began searching the pile for any kind of explanation to who Enustas really was. He had no idea what he was looking for; anything out of the ordinary he supposed. But then, everything had been 'out of the ordinary' ever since he had passed through that wormhole a year ago. After a few minutes, he became conscious of the fact that he was just ploughing through clothes; dank, poorly-knitted clothes.

He slammed the material down on the ground and wiped saliva from his lips.

He jumped suddenly when he heard the sound of something mechanical behind him. He slowly turned his head and saw exactly what he thought he would see; a pair of DRD's on the bed, pointing their low-wattage lasers at him. This time it seemed that there was a reason behind their odd behaviour. "What are you doing, Crichton?" said the voice of Pilot over the comm. system.

John stood up straight where he had been crouching. He did not move his eyes from the bizarrely menacing little machines, the lasers of which tracked his movement. "Ah, well, Pilot…" He had to come with a good excuse, and fast. "…um, I was just checking the girl's room was neat and tidy, for when she returned." That was poor, even for him.

"A likely excuse Crichton!" Pilot's voice was calm and collected while at the same time, extremely chilling. "I'm afraid I cannot allow you to keep upsetting our guest. You must di…" He paused for a second. "You must be placed in confinement for the remainder of her stay!"

"What?" That was a little harsh wasn't it? But at least he didn't go with what he was first going to say, not that the lasers of the DRDs would actually be able to kill a person.

"Will you come willingly or will you have to be forced?" Pilot asked him.

"Am I under arrest or something?" Crichton started laughing, desperately hoping that this was all some kind of hallucination or dream.

He was relieved when a moment later he heard heavy footsteps coming up the corridor. D'Argo would save him without a doubt. Indeed the Luxan rounded the corner, his Qualta blade in his hands, primed for firing. At first he took aim at the DRDs, but then he turned on John. "I've been hearing rumours that you've been making our guest feel very uncomfortable!" he stated seriously.

Crichton couldn't help his laughter. This all sounded so ridiculous to him. "What are you talking about Big Dee? I've hardly seen her since she came on board. How could_ I_ have upset her?"

"Well you found a way!" The Warrior brought the blade up to his face so he could aim more accurately. John couldn't tell exactly where he was aiming, but it was at something lower down than his stomach.

"I've been hearing similar things!" Rygel said as he rounded the corner on his annoyingly, noisy chair.

"Sparky, so good to see you're feeling better. How's about helping us out here?" He couldn't believe that he was placing all his hope solely on the shoulders of the Hynerian.

"Not after you tried it on with Enustas!" he said accusingly. "She is not even the same race as you!"

Before Crichton could reply to the gruesome creature, D'Argo interrupted. "What does it matter to you, slime ball?"

"'What does it matter?' It matters because Enustas and I are deeply in love. She will return with me to Hyneria and rule by my side as my queen," he said with a hint of patriotism.

"I'm afraid you are sorely mistaken." The Luxan turned his weapon upon the Hynerian. "As soon as we find my son, she will be coming with me!"

"Oh shut up, you brute!" John knew what was coming next. The Hynerian opened his mouth and spat out a huge wedge of saliva at the Luxan, or whatever his system concocted inside his stomach. With super-human speed, D'Argo dodged the attack and brought his blade dangerously close to the Hynerian's neck.

It looked as if they would be fighting for a while. John had to make use of the distractions. He made his way to the door, staying well away from the quarrelling aliens.

"I'm not finished with you yet, Crichton!" said the voice of Pilot over the comm. system. John peered over his shoulder; he had completely forgotten about the DRDs. Now they were following him!

"You have gone way overboard Pilot!" He broke into a sprint in an effort to get away from the little machines. But he knew that it would do him no good. There were thousands spread through Moya's shafts and corridors; they would find him one way or another.

He had to find the other women as they were the only ones on board acting normal. He could talk to them and with any luck they would understand. They might even protect him from the murderous DRDs, despite the fact that the robots seemed pretty determined to attack him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Part VII**

Crichton came charging around the corner into the bridge, almost knocking Chiana over in the process. He stopped in the nick of time, right before being slapped in the face by the Nebari. John felt blood flush to the point of contact. He put his hand on his cheek and cringed in pain.

"You scared the hell out of me, Crichton!" she yelled in his face.

"Somehow, I think you came out better in this," he replied, gesturing at his throbbing cheek.

John could see that Zhaan was also on the bridge, but there was no sign of Aeryn. It was then that he realised he could look at the females without any feelings of repulsion. Perhaps whatever had come over him had now subsided; he was free to think his own thoughts. 'Aeryn's hot' he said within his head. No ill emotions; he had passed the test.

"You seem to be in a hurry John. What is it you need?" Zhaan's voice was as calm as a breeze on a summer's day; it relaxed him greatly.

John moved further into the room and had Chiana close the door behind him. When he was sure that they were both listening to him, he spoke. "I think I'm in danger," he said.

"Danger? From who, or what?" Zhaan asked him.

"Everyone on this ship, minus the women."

"What!? What is wrong with you? You paranoid or something?" Chiana butted in.

Zhaan gestured for her to be silent with a swish of her hand. "Why do you think such a thing?"

"They think I insulted Enustas. They're all obsessed with her, and they all want to get at me because they think _I_ want her. If it hadn't been for a bit of civil war distracting them, I doubt I would have got away." He took a quick survey of the room. "Though I think the DRDs are still after me."

Chiana let out a laugh of annoyance. "Now we know he's crazy. DRDs? Chasing you?"

John was about to reply when he heard the sound of whirring coming from one of the ventilation ducts. The small metal archway opened out and a DRD came into the room. John immediately leapt onto the table in the centre of the bridge. "Kill it! Kill it, it's come to get me!"

Zhaan moved her eyes from the human to the innocent looking machine. It did not appear to show any interest in Crichton whatsoever. Instead it just moved across the room and re-entered the ventilation system through another hole.

John was astonished by what he had just seen. The DRD had ignored him. It was a ruse, it had to be. A ruse by Pilot to lure him into a false sense of security, and just when he felt safe, the DRDs would turn on him again with a vengeance. Well he was not going to fall for it.

Chiana said nothing. She just threw her arms up in the air and let out a huff of frustration. She moved towards the door but was once again almost hit when it swung open right in front of her. She moved out the way in time. "What has everybody got against me all of a sudden?" she cried. John felt like throttling her where she stood. People were not targeting her, they were targeting him.

Through the doorway came Crichton's object of desire, Aeryn Sun. She had a look of determination on her face; evidently, she was not simply having a stroll. She went straight over to one of the bridge's control panels and began fiddling about with the buttons and levers; she took no notice of anyone else in the room. John noticed that she had developed some beads of sweat on her brow. It was then that he became aware of the fact that the temperature inside the ship had risen in the past few arns.

"Aeryn?" he asked as he edged closer. He knew her moods well. If he made too sudden a movement when she was like this, she would certainly retaliate; it was what she had been programmed to do by the Peacekeepers, neutralise threats. "What are you doing?"

Surprisingly, she answered him instead of striking him. "The temperature's been put up by something. I need to turn it down."

Sabacean heat delirium, known as the living-dead in its later stages. She had suffered it not long after his arrival, when Moya had been infested with some kind of bug, known as the Drak, which lived in space, waiting for something inhabitable to come by. He had been seriously distressed by that experience. Aeryn had asked him to take her life when it got too much for her. She had enquired afterwards whether he could have done it, whether he could have let her die. He had never answered her. Truth be told he hadn't been sure at the time, but now he was definite; he _could_ take her life if the delirium took her. She feared the living death so much that she would rather die; he cared too much for her to deny such a request.

All of a sudden, she slammed her fists down on the panel.

"What is it?" John said.

"It won't let me turn the heat down!"

John went over to her and felt her forehead; she was burning up. "You need to rest." He turned to Zhaan. "Could you take her to her room?"

"Of course John." She put an arm around the Sabacean to support her and guided her to her chamber.

"I'll sort out the heat. Don't you worry Aeryn!" John called seconds before she and the Delvian moved out of view.

Now it was just him and Chiana, left staring at one another, daring the other to make the first move.

"Chiana, I'm going to need your help."

"My help?!"

"All right! Your protection." She gave him a questionable look. "Come on! You can handle yourself. I need you!"

She took a moment to think; all the while, she shifted from foot to foot, as if she was nervous about something. "Where you going then?" she asked him finally.

"Well the only place I can suggest is the den. Maybe Pilot has to ability to turn down the heat. Though, uh…" he moved closer to her, closer enough to whisper, "…you may need to do the talking. He's on a mission to kill me at the moment after all."

She breathed heavily. "All right. But this is for Aeryn, not for you!" she told him, pointing a threatening finger.

"I'm doing it for the same reason."


	8. Chapter 8

**Part VIII**

When they entered the den of Pilot, they were hit by a wave of hot air; the air in here was even hotter than in the rest if the ship. They looked towards the centre; Pilot seemed unperturbed by it. They held back so as to avoid attracting his attention.

"Go and tell him to turn the heat down…and ask him why he put it up in the first place!" Crichton whispered into Chiana's ear.

"Why don't you do!" she yelled a little too loudly.

Pilot suddenly realised that he was no longer alone in his abode. He growled warningly; John knew it was directed at him and not the Nebari beside him. "Crichton! How bold of you to come face-to-face with me!"

Crichton made a pathetic attempt of lightening the mood. He smiled and chuckled at Pilot but not in a way which would appear offensive. "Oh, come on Pilot old pal! We're still friends, aren't we?" He grew less confident when Pilot's expression did not slacken. "You see now?" he said to Chiana quietly; his lips remained stationary while he spoke.

She did not reply straight away, but John could tell by the tightening image in her face that she hated to admit that he was right. Instead she just strolled casually over to Pilot in the centre of the den. Crichton followed cautiously. For the whole time, Pilot's eyes had not been removed from John.

"Pilot," Chiana started, "why have you turned the heating up?"

Still Pilot did not look away from the jumpy human. "I haven't!"

Chiana laughed, believing that Pilot was simply joking. When his stern face remained unchanged, her giggles subsided. "What do you mean you haven't? Can't you feel the heat?"

"No, I can't!"

"Look Pilot, you gotta turn the heat down. Aeryn's feeling the delirium coming on again. You remember what it was like last time, with the Drak," John told him.

"What do you care? You tried to steal Enustas away from me!" Pilot shouted angrily.

"What are you talking about? I don't want her! She's not my type! You can have her for all I care, though I don't understand how you could anything with her," John explained.

"What do you mean?" Pilot's voice had been turned down a notch.

"She's Sebacean, or something that looks Sebacean, isn't she?"

"How dare you!" His voice had risen again. "She is one of my species!" He looked to be about to strike Crichton with one of his arms, but Chiana intervened, grabbing Pilot's face and turning him so that he was looking at her and not Crichton.

"Aeryn may be dying from this delirium. Now I haven't seen anyone affected by this but I have heard from the others, it isn't nice. Turn the heat down Pilot, even if you can't feel it. Please!"

Pilot's expression softened as Chiana's words flowed into his mind. "All right," he said weakly. Pilot's arms started moving about, pressing various buttons. All the while, Chiana held his head in her hands.

For the rest they spent in the den, Pilot did not interact with Crichton again. As they past through the doorway, the change in temperature was noticeable. Aeryn would be all right; it had not gotten as hot as last time.

"We need to find Enustas!" Crichton told Chiana as they made their way down the passageways of the ship. John was still pretty edgy, checking behind and above his head for any sign of a DRD; he couldn't be sure whether Pilot had dropped the charges, or whether he had called off the DRDs. "She can't be just some 'poor girl' if she's making the other guys on the ship act so strangely."

Chiana stopped and looked at him. "I guess you want my help in this."

"If possible, yes. You're a good team-mate."

She smiled kindly at him, before putting her arms around one of his, and continuing the search for the girl.


	9. Chapter 9

**Part IX**

They searched everywhere, every deck, every tier. They ran into Zhaan a couple of times. She told them that Aeryn was recovering, and that the delirium had not been as serious as the last occurrence. She was resting now, recovering her strength. They came to the decision to check in with D'Argo to see if he knew where Enustas was. It was odd that they could not find her; John would have thought she would have had a line of males following her everywhere she went, worshipping the ground she stepped on.

When they arrived at the living quarters, they stopped just before D'Argo's door. John could hear something, and he knew Chiana could hear it as well. It was the faint sound of puffing, but not just the sound of a male, but of a female also. Chiana looked up at him with dread in her eyes. John pointed at the door with his fore and middle finger, a signal asking her to look through the gate. She shook her head vigorously, mouthing the word 'no'.

"If he sees me, he'll kill me!" John spat in her ear.

She sighed angrily. "You owe me!" she shouted silently. She turned on her heel and crept closer to the door. She moved her head forward to see through one of the gaps in the door. John saw Chiana take a sharp intake of breath, a sign of shock. She retracted her head and moved back over to him.

"Is he…?" he began.

"Yes," she replied instantly.

"With…"

"Yes!"

"Well at least we know where she is." He wiped his lips with his thumb as he thought. "Tell him to come to the mess hall when he's…done."

"What!?" she yelled. "I'm not disturbing him."

"Do it Chiana!" he yelled right back at her.

She sighed. "You better have a good reason for this." She moved cautiously back over to the door. John saw her cross her fingers before she spoke. "D'Argo! Could you come to the mess hall when you're finished?" There was no reply at first, just the continuing sound of huffing. "You hear me?" she cried again.

This time there was a reply. "Okay!" D'Argo said loudly.

The two of them had heard enough. Chiana ran ahead to get away from the noise as soon as possible, and John trudged along behind.

They found Zhaan in the mess hall. She had already set up her little 'biology set', though it was a little more sophisticated than anything found back on Earth. John had asked her to do so a while before they had found where Enustas was. They had to take a sample of DNA, or something along those lines, and find out what she really was. D'Argo had now provided them with an easy way of getting a sample of Enustas.

"I'm all ready here John."

"Right. D'argo will be along shortly. He'll be able to provide us with a sample of the girl."

They waited for almost an arn before D'Argo came strolling leisurely into the room. Crichton stood back in the shadows so as not to attract attention to himself and risk the Luxan's wrath.

Chiana risked it all when she had a sudden outburst. "What were you doing in there D'Argo? You getting desperate? Is that it?"

John felt the need to step in at this point. "Chiana! Calm it!"

As John stepped into view, D'Argo growled at him viciously.

"Big Dee, I'm not here to start stealing any women from you. I just need to ask you something." He waited for the Luxan to give him permission to do so.

After a few seconds, D'Argo's face softened. "All right."

"Did you kiss her at all?"

"Kiss?" the Luxan said. Evidently, he was unsure of the term.

"Yeah, kiss. You know, lips put together." He tried to imitate the action by smacking his hands together.

"Why do you want to know?" Once again, his voice grew hard and cold.

This time, Zhaan decided to be the saving grace. "Please D'Argo. We just need a sample of the girl's DNA. I believe we can get some from your smackers."

Chiana stepped in, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Come on D'Argo!"

The Luxan shook Chiana's hand off and turned to Zhaan. "Fine, I did kiss her. You can have what you want, but then you must leave her, and me, alone!"

Zhaan glimpsed at John who gave his approval. "Very well." She took him over to her bench and asked him to sit on the table while she took a sample of saliva from his lips.

Meanwhile, John went over to Chiana in order to ask another favour of her. "Chiana, I need you to locate Enustas again."

"And do what with her?" She didn't seem as reluctant to comply as she did for the last thing he asked her.

"Just keep an eye on her. Don't let her out of sight. If we discover something from this sample, we need to be able to capture her quickly."

She understood perfectly. "Okay John." She smiled at him before running from the room.

Crichton was surprised. She rarely referred to him by his Christian name. He wondered why, on this occasion, she had done.

"Okay, you can go," John heard Zhaan say from behind him. He turned and saw D'Argo get up from where he was sitting and stomp out of the hall, without another word spoken. He didn't even make to effort to glare at him; perhaps he was recovering from this state of paranoia, like Pilot.

"My analysis should not take long. You can stay if you wish." She got about her business of studying the sample.

John did not want to distract her from the work, so he went over to a shadowy shot at the side and sat on the ground. He did not feel at all sleepy, and yet a few seconds later he dozed off.


	10. Chapter 10

**Part X**

John was shaken awake by a blurred figure. As the doziness was removed form his body, the features of the person sharpened and John saw that it was in fact Aeryn, seemingly fully recovered from her illness. What a great sight to wake up to, a beautiful woman smiling down at him. She helped him to his feet without needing to be asked.

"Zhaan told me about test you asked her to perform. Are you suspicious of Enustas?" she asked him.

"Well, yeah; aren't you?" he laughed, as if it the answer was obvious.

"Of course, but I haven't been around to see why _you_ are suspicious of her."

"Right." He looked around; there was only Zhaan in the room, still working at her desk. "I'm suspicious because she's making all the guys on Moya act very strangely."

"Including you?"

"At first, but whatever effect she had on me seems to have disappeared. Anyway, from what I've heard from the others, we all see her differently. You and the other women see her as some elderly, crippled lady in need of aid. I see her as an attractive human. D'Argo apparently sees her as a Luxan, Rygel thinks she's Hynerian, and Pilot thinks she's…a Pilot."

Aeryn gave him a look which made him believe he belonged in a mental asylum.

"It's crazy I know, but…"

"It may not be as crazy as you think John," Zhaan told him.

John turned and went over to her desk, followed by Aeryn. "Why? What have you found?"

"Well, from looking at her DNA, I can see that she is not Human, nor is she Hynerian, Luxan, or a Pilot. To be honest, I am unsure of what species she belongs to."

John and Aeryn gawked at her expectantly.

"What I have found out is that she secretes a hormone."

"A hormone! What kind?" John persisted.

"A pheromone to be exact, and it is extremely potent. So potent in fact that it may cause you to see her as a person you find very attractive. I can tell you with confidence that she is actually an old woman, as we females are unaffected by the pheromones given off by another female."

"And this would also explain why all the others are acting paranoid. Why they think that all the other males are trying to get with Enustas."

"Yes, almost certainly John."

"And you can get all this from a bit of saliva?" said Aeryn.

"You'd be surprised how much we Delvians can learn about a person, from so small a sample."

John, with his hands on the edge of the table, bent at the waist so that his back was parallel with the floor. He breathed out and thought hard about their next move. "We need to get her off before we end up killing each other." He stood up straight again and tapped him communications device. "Chiana? You there?"

A moment's silence before a voice came through the speaker. "Yeah, I'm here, but _she_ isn't. I can't find her."

"Have you checked everywhere?"

"Yes, I have!"

John took another moment to think. He had seen her with Pilot and he had seen her with D'Argo; he had not yet seen her with Rygel, not that he really wanted to. "Check in with Rygel, he might know where she is?"

"Okay, keep in touch." The comm. went dead.

"Zhaan. Is there any way you can create some kind of immunisation against these pheromones?"

"Quite possibly John, but it will take time," she told him reassuringly.

"Okay, good." He turned to Aeryn. "Aeryn, I want you to check in on Pilot."

"Where are you going?" she asked

"To find D'Argo; to see what he's up to."


	11. Chapter 11

**Part XI**

It took Crichton a long time to find D'Argo, and when he did, he was taken aback. The Luxan was loading supply crates onto one of the transport pods, and by the looks of it, it was just about everything they had on board.

"D'Argo! What are you doing?" He approached cautiously, realising what the warrior breed could do if he was in a sour mood.

D'Argo jumped as sson as he heard the human's voice. "Uh…what?" he said apprehensively. He was standing up right by the wall, as if cornered by some wild animal.

"I said 'what are you doing?'" he repeated, slow and clear.

D'Argo's eyes moved around the room while he came up with a reasonable excuse. John saw this act of guilt and knew beforehand that the Luxan would tell a lie.

"Enustas is leaving…getting off at the next planet. She asked me to load a transport pod with a few supplies to keep her going."

John laughed. "You serious?" He started turning around in a circle, his arms outstretched, indicating the numerous crates which quite literally filled the loading area. "_Some_ supplies!?" he cried, "D'Argo, man, you're taking the whole ship with you!" He looked back at the Luxan and waited for an explanation to his strange behaviour, though of course he already knew where the roots of his actions lay.

"Uh…well…" Ka hesitated, "…that's just what she asked for."

John breathed out and simply stared at the Luxan. "Right," was all he could bring himself to say until his comm.. badge buzzed. "Chiana?"

"Crichton?" Her voice was flat and lifeless.

"What is it?" He had turned his back on D'Argo, so he was completely unaware of the Luxan picking up a nearby metal pole.

"I just saw Rygel…with Enustas."

He knew immediately why she seemed so mentally distressed; she had witnessed something horrifying!

"Okay, so long as we know where she is. Get to a safe distance and follow her if she leaves."

"Okay," she replied, "what are you gonna do?" There was no reply. "Crichton? Crichton!"


	12. Chapter 12

**Part XII**

John did not open his eyes at first. He shook his head violently, trying to the shake the drunken pain he felt within his mind. When he did eventually open his eyelids, he found that he was in his room, lying on his bed as far as he could tell. It was then that he realised that he couldn't move. He peered down the extent of his body and saw that he had been tied down, around the legs, his stomach and his chest. He wiggled his body in a desperate effort to get free, but the ropes were tied too tightly. He looked down at the ropes a second time before slamming his head back onto his pillow. He yelped in pain when it hit. He then recalled the last feeling he had before blacking out; something had struck him round the back of the head extraordinarily hard. There was pain, and then he had passed out. He came to the conclusion that he had been attacked. But only D'Argo had been in the room with him; Big Dee wouldn't attack him just because of a woman, would he?

Then another important point occurred to him; how long had he been out? If he had been out for a long while then why had no one been looking for him; surely his room would be the obvious place. This is why he decided that he had not been out for too long. He had to get back into the fray. He sincerely hoped that Chiana had been keeping an eye on Enustas. She could not be allowed to escape with all their supplies, if that was really her plan.

There was no way he was going to be able to free himself. He would just have to rely on one of the others, one of the women preferably as they were the only ones on board still in their correct frame of minds.

"Zhaan?!" he shouted. "Aeryn?! Someone?"

There were no immediate replies, but not long after he heard the sound of boots striding purposefully down the corridor outside. That meant it was either D'Argo or Aeryn, and he knew which one he would prefer to see.

He sat dangerously still, watching through the gaps in the door at the passage beyond. He swallowed several times until his mouth was parched of all liquid. He clenched his fists to stop them from shaking. But when he saw the Aeryn round the corner in her tight vest, all tension was suddenly dismissed from his body. He left out a breath of air which he had been holding in and loosened up his muscles.

Aeryn opened the gate and John saw that she was clutching her pulse rifle in one hand. Even when she saw Crichton strapped onto his bed, she did not rush to save him. "You had a rough time?" she said with a smirk on her face.

"You could say that," he told her, and turned his head away so she could see his injury.

He heard her gasp. "You're covered in blood," she said as she rushed to his side and started untying him.

"How long was I out?" he asked when she was done.

"I don't know," she answered rather rudely.

"Then why were you looking for me?"

"I wasn't. I just heard you shouting!" She had begun patching up John's wound the best she could with what she had.

When she had finished with him, she helped him up. He went over to the door and peered out into the corridor. "Do you know if Chiana kept her eye on Enustas?"

"I don't know. I haven't heard from Chiana for a couple of arns."

John brainstormed possibilities for a second; what could have befallen her? Perhaps she had been knocked out and tied up too. "What about Zhaan? Has she made an immunity 'potion' yet?"

"I haven't checked up on her either for an arn or two."

"Then don't you think we better check up on her, and then look for Chiana?" John suggested to her.

"Yes, all right."

"Right," he nodded and moved on down the passage.

Aeryn suddenly noticed something. "Do you think the temperature's gone up again?" she called out.

"Come on!" he cried back, and she obliged reluctantly.


	13. Chapter 13

**Part XIII**

By the time they reached the mess hall where Zhaan was working, John too had noticed the second rise in temperature. He was developing beads of sweat on his brow which he repeatedly wiped away with his forearm. When he looked back at Aeryn, he saw that she was growing disoriented once again. What was the reason for it this time?

Zhaan was still working on the vaccine. John could tell by the intensity of her concentration that she had yet to find such a medicine.

"Zhaan! Why haven't you kept in contact?" he asked as he approached.

"I've been too busy, on this vaccine, John!" she spat irritably.

"How long before you think it can be synthesised?" he said quietly.

"A while, John. And this heat is aiding the speed of the process!"

John saw that the Delvian was also beginning to sweat.

"What's the deal with this second wave of heat?" Crichton called out. He tapped his comm. badge. "Pilot?" There was no answer. "Pilot?" he said again. "Damn! What is it with people and keeping in contact?"

A moment later, Aeryn collapsed to the floor, unconscious. John rushed to her side, checked her pulse. It was high and her forehead was tremendously hot. He picked her up with both arms and leaned her against a wall near Zhaan.

"Keep an eye on her," he told the Delvian.

"Where are you going?"

"To speak to Pilot!"

He left right away at a fast-paced jog. He made his way through the various corridors of the ship, through the many tiers.

On the way, he passed the door leading to the bridge. He skidded to a halt when he spotted beams of intense light pouring through the gaps between the door and the frame. He crept close and put his hand on the Leviathan flesh; he retracted it right away due to the heat of the metal. He frowned at the door before reaching for the controls and allowing it to flip open in front of him. As soon as the opening appeared, John was hit by a blinding light. He shielded his eyes with his arms. He peeked below to find that beyond the viewport, was a star…and they were heading right for it. In that instant, the reason for the increasing heat was made known to him; they were on a collision course with a star.

"Pilot !" he shouted into his comlink, but still no reply came.

He backed out of the room and continued his ascent to the den, the lair of the elusive Pilot. Throughout his entire journey, he encountered no one; none of the men, not Enustas, not Chiana, not even any DRDs!

When he came to the door of the den, the heat had reached a point which was almost unbearable for him. He hated to think what state Aeryn was in at this point. They had brought her back from the edge of the 'living death' twice before, and he would do it a third time.

He entered the room and found that the heat was not as strong inside. Pilot had not moved from his position, not that he could. He seemed unperturbed by the heat. He was moving about, from left to right, playing with the many controls spread out before him, as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

John struggled over the bridge to the centre. He was finding it difficult to walk in a straight line, but he tried his best not to topple over the edge.

"Pilot! Turn the ship around!" he cried. His vision was distorting, becoming blurry. He could barely make out Pilot's reply when it came.

"I can't! Enustas instructed me to hit the star!" he stated in a neutral voice, as if he was under the invisible control of another.

"Aeryn's dying!" John was on his knees now, shuffling closer towards Pilot.

"There is nothing I can do about that!"

"Yes you can! You can save her! Just turn the ship around!" Crichton was on all fours now, crawling up the side of the wall around Pilot, like a begging dog.

"But, Enustas…"

"Forget about her. She's dangerous!"

"She loves me!" Pilot roared.

"If she loves you then why would she let you die, let all of us die?"

Pilot looked at him at an angle, stunned.

"If Moya crashes, she'll die, you'll die, everyone will die!" John said weakly. He could say no more. If Pilot was still not convinced, then they were doomed.

Pilot did and said nothing for several moments. He looked to be deep in thought. Slowly, his lips parted. "You're…right!" He glanced down at the controls, and at the hands which now pressed down on them.

John felt Moya shudder as she went to turn away from the star. He then felt a sudden weightlessness as she produced a burst of acceleration.

By now Crichton's body had fully slumped to the floor. He smiled at the fact that he had survived, against the odds, yet again. His thoughts turned to Aeryn. He hoped she was all right. With all the energy he could muster, he whispered her name, moments before falling unconscious.


	14. Chapter 14

**Sorry for the long delay, but exams are close at hand. This will hopefully be finished within the next week or two. Thank you for your patience.**

**

* * *

****Part XIV**

John was knocked from the realms of unconsciousness and into reality, but a rhythmic slapping of his cheek. He could guess who it was even before he opened his eyes.

"Chiana," he said weakly, "quit it."

He opened his eyelids and sure enough, there was the Nebari, leering over him. He had not been moved from where he fell. He glimpsed to the side to see Pilot staring back at him with a concerned expression. "You back to normal then Pilot?"

"Yes, Commander Crichton. Thank you for enquiring. I am sorry for my inexcusable behaviour," he told him remorsefully.

"It's all right Pilot, we all go through it at some time in our lives." With the help of Chiana, he stumbled to his feet. After a few moments, he remembered something. "Aeryn! How is she?" he asked desperately.

Chiana and Pilot looked at each other for a second, and then back at John. "She made it…barely. We'll just have to wait to see if she'll recover fully."

John's head dipped and his eyes shut. He prayed that she would recover; he didn't want to have to put her out of her pain.

He looked over at Pilot. "Where's Enustas?"

"She left with D'Argo aboard one of the transport pods before the incident with the star."

"Can you track it?"

"Yes. We already know which planet they landed on; one of the orbiting bodies of that star."

"Take us there."

"Of course Crichton," he replied, and set about controlling Moya.

John now turned to Chiana. "As for you Pip, you and I are going on another trip."

She giggled childishly and followed him as he walked out of the Den, purposefully.


	15. Chapter 15

**Part XV**

John arrived back in the mess hall, followed eagerly by Chiana. Zhaan still stood by her desk, though this time she did not seem to be engrossed in her work. This was probably an indication that she had finished work on the vaccine. They got closer and their presence was made known to the Delvian. She went over to meet them halfway. I her hand she held what looked to be a dart of some kind. When she was close enough, she extended her arm and offered the dart to John. He took it and looked her in the eyes, questionably.

"Within this dart in contained the vaccine. Fire this at whoever you need to and a moment later, any effects the hormones had on this person will vanish."

"More than likely, we'll need to use it on D'Argo, once we find him that is." He stashed the dart away inside his pocket. "How's Aeryn doing?"

Zhaan looked down nervously. "As Chiana may have already told you, only time will tell."

John had hoped that Zhaan would give him a more positive answer; alas, not. "Fine," he said. "We'll be back soon," he told her, referring to himself and the Nebari. He was about to turn, when he remembered to ask a small request of Zhaan. "Please, take care of her."

"Of course. You know I will John," she replied caringly.

"Thanks." And with that he left the mess hall and headed for the hangar where the second transport pod awaited their arrival.

The journey down to the hangar passed without John really realising it. His mind was set on Aeryn and her condition. If her state was permanent, he was unsure what he would be forced to do to Enustas. Killing her seemed a bit extreme, but his rage would make Enustas' death a plausible outcome.

When they reached the ship, John allowed Chiana to board first, being the gentleman that he was. He followed her inside and sat down in the pilot's seat.

Chiana sat down in the seat next to him. "You ready?" she asked him joyfully.

"Yeah," he said eventually. "Pilot?" he called through his comm. device.

"Yes, Commander Crichton?" Pilot's distinguishing voice was vented through the speaker.

"Can you send the precise coordinates of the other ship through to this transport pod?"

"Certainly Crichton." There was a pause. "Transmitting…now!"

"Thanks Pilot. We'll be back in a bit" The ship lifted off from the dock and turned towards the opening in Moya's outer hull.

"Be careful," Pilot said thoughtfully.

"It'll be a piece of cake; stop the girl, save the guy, but…thanks anyway Pilot."

There was no reply, but Crichton knew that a answer was not needed in this case.

The pod accelerated through the opening in the hangar and out into space. They were immediately hit by the sight of the planet below. It was a mix of blues, greens and greys, and very few weather conditions could be seen from where they were.

"It's beautiful…and big. How are we gonna find them?" Chiana asked.

"Don't worry, we have the coordinates. And by the looks of things, we're going to end up in one of the urbanised area." He laughed. "Very clever! This may make things more interesting."

He switched the ship over to autopilot and withdrew the dart from his pocket. "Now how are we gonna get you to inject your payload into D'Argo?"

Chiana snatched the dart from his open palm. "Just leave that to me. You'll find I can be very sneaky," she told him mischievously.

"Yeah," he said, "don't I know it?"


	16. Chapter 16

**Part XVI**

Zhaan kept her promise to John. For the next arn, she did not move from Aeryn's side. The Sebacean had not yet regained consciousness since her initial collapse. At least she was getting the chance to recover her energy; she deserved the rest. She had done so much to help them in the cycle they had been together. It had not been expected of her, considering her Peacekeeper background, but still she had done all she could to aid them in their travels. She had truly blossomed into a noble companion for all of them, especially John, who everyone knew was quite taken with Aeryn.

When she was certain that her condition was stable, Zhaan left her bedside and set about searching for the other crewmembers. She stopped in at the Den to check up on Pilot. None of the symptoms of the pheromones had returned to him, which was a good sign; she would not need to inoculate him with the vaccine. She hoped she could say the same of Rygel when she found him.

It did not take her long to find the Hynerian. He was in his room, packing away all his possessions. She entered silently and placed her hand on Rygel's shoulder. He jumped in surprise and turned with a look of contempt at the intrusion into his private abode. He growled, but said nothing.

"May I ask what you are doing Rygel?" she asked him soothingly.

"Gathering all my possessions, if you must know!" he replied gruffly.

"For what reason would this be?" she went on.

"Reason? The reason being that we must return to my home world with all haste, so I may be able to cast out my cousin who usurped my rule. Then I shall rule my people, with Enustas as my Queen!" With his reason given, he continued to gather his royal garments and riches.

Zhaan smiled as she stared down the neck of the Dominar. She gave a slight bow and said, "please continue." And with that, she left the room.

As she moved silently down the corridor, he smile was replaced with a look of frustration. She would need to synthesise another dose of the antidote if Rygel was ever going to return to his usual self, not that she didn't love hearing and seeing less of him. He could not live the rest of his life with an illusionary image of what his future would be like. She would check on in Aeryn again, before heading to the mess hall to concoct another potion.


	17. Chapter 17

**Part XVII**

John landed the pod as close to the other pod's signature as he could. They would have to make the rest of the journey by foot. Before exiting out into the street, John checked that he had Winona strapped to his belt; who knew how rough this planet would be? Once outside, John sealed the ship up. He then moved into the town, followed closely by his trusty companion.

The streets were bustling with activity. There were market stores aligned against the buildings on both sides. This forced the huge amount of pedestrian traffic into a constant bottle neck; there was barely enough room to breathe. Nor could they hear themselves think, what with the cries from market sellers, informing people of the special offers and sales they were having on this particular day. The general architecture of the city, was poor compared to some of the conurbations John had seen whilst on Moya. They looked to be made out of clay, or some other natural material; there was no metal in sight. Perhaps this was because there was a lack of natural resources on the planet, or maybe the inhabitants simply did not want to modernise.

When people tried to address either of them directly, John shook his head to display his disinterest. He knew these people had to make a living, but after a time it really began to get on his nerves.

They headed in the direction of the other transport pod's signal. With any luck they would run into D'Argo, or perhaps even Enustas, on their way. And thankfully, their luck held out. As they walked, they heard a voice which remarkably resembled the Luxan's. As they got closer to the source, they discovered that it also sounded rather aggressive and confrontational. They rounded a corner and sure enough, there was D'Argo. To both John and Chiana's surprise, he was holding his Qualta to the neck of a stall keeper.

"You have five microts to hand over those supplies," he was saying.

The keeper was shaking in fear. "Please sir!" he pleaded. "I need the money." What surprised John even more was that not one of the passing pedestrians was even offering to help.

D'Argo growled. "Then you leave me no choice."

He raised his blade and was about to strike when John called out his name: "D'Argo!"

The Luxan twisted his head and saw the two of them. His face no longer displayed anger, but rather fear. "Oh crap!" he said quietly, shortly before turning and running in the opposite direction.

"Dammit!" Crichton whispered. He gave chase, with Chiana close behind.

Meanwhile, the keeper whom D'Argo had threatened remained still for several seconds, before returning to the business of the day: calling out to all passers-by, informing them about the many products he had to sell and their heavily reduced prices.

It was not as easy for John and Chiana to run through the crowd. The Luxan was big and strong enough to charge through people without any hindrance to his speed. The Human and the Nebari however, were not as strong. All they could do was slide through the gaps in the crowd or cry out for people to get out of their way. Even when they lost sight of him, they could still track D'Argo seeing as he left a trail of destruction: people lying on their backs and stalls having been tipped over.

Eventually, they were able to spot D'Argo in the distance. At this point, Chiana ducked into a side alley and out of sight. Crichton stopped momentarily, realising that he could not lose the Luxan's trail if he was ever going to find him again. He peered into the darkened alley. "Chiana!" When no reply came, he waved his hand in a submissive gesture before re-initiating the chase.

After a time, the crowd began to thin and the stalls became less numerous. He had to be approaching the city limits; this meant that he was probably nearing the other transport pod. He rounded several more corners until the citizens had all but disappeared, as had the stalls, resulting in a wider path to run down.

A few corners later and John was met with his quarry; the transport pod, along with Enustas, and a a worn-out D'Argo. John felt the same. He bent over and clutched his knees, gasping for breath. When he was sufficiently stocked up on oxygen, he took a few steps forward and whipped out his pistol. His aim moved from the Luxan, to the girl, and back again. Damn, where had Chiana disappeared off to?

"D'Argo! We're taking those supplies back to Moya!" he said forcefully.

D'Argo moved in front of Enustas and aimed his Qualta blade at John; it was primed to fire. "I'm sorry John, but I cannot do that," he responded calmly.

"D'Argo! You cannot trust her! She gives off pheromones. That's why you're so attracted to her. But she's using you to get supplies. Once you lose your usefulness, she'll kill you, just like she tried to kill Moya and everyone on board!"

D'Argo adjusted his grip on his weapon; a sign of uncertainty. "If what you say is true, then why aren't you affected by her?"

"I was, at first. But humans have an inferior pheromone detector to the likes of yours, or Pilot's, or even Rygel's. Once again, my weaknesses save the day," he said with a smirk. "So what you gonna do D'Argo? You gonna kill me?"

There was an uneasy minute where John thought the Luxan was actually going to shoot him. But then there was high-pitched war cry from somewhere out of sight, and a second later, Chiana leapt from the shadows behind D'Argo and stabbed the dart into his shoulder. The blade fell from his hands and he dropped to his knees. The Nebari used her outstanding acrobatic skills and did several back flips before coming to rest beside Crichton. Boy, was he glad to see her.

In the commotion, no one really noticed Enustas pick up the Qualta blade, move behind D'Argo and hold it to his neck. John aimed Winona at her head, which was dangerously close to the Luxan's; he wasn't going to risk it. But she couldn't escape. If she did, she would just do the same to another crew. He wouldn't allow anyone else to go through what they had gone through. She was too dangerous to let live.

"You should have stayed away!" Enustas hissed. She then whacked D'Argo around the head with the hilt of his blade and made a run for the ship. Now that he had a clear aim, John pulled the trigger…but nothing happened. He tried again…nothing. It had jammed! A few more seconds and she would escape. Chiana had no weapon to use, so she was no help. He tried again, and again, and again, but nothing happened. Then he heard a blast from the Qualta blade. It flew through the air with pinpoint accuracy, striking Enustas in the back of the head, moments before reaching the transport pod. She fell to the ground, dead, finally.

John looked down to see D'Argo on the ground, Qualta blade in hand. What a bit of luck. He thought that Enustas had knocked him out with the strike to the head. John breathed out a long breath to calm his nerves, and before he could help himself, he burst out laughing. Chiana gawked at him, surprised how he could find such a stressful ordeal funny. D'Argo's head dropped and hit the stony ground; _now_ he was unconscious.

When John's laughing fit had subsided, they moved D'Argo into the transport pod. Chiana then lifted off and took it back to Moya. John on the other hand, stuck around for a while. He moved the body of Enustas into the woods beyond the city limits and burned her corpse. After doing that, he returned to the transport pod that he and Chiana had arrived in. He lifted off and set it to autopilot. The quiet droning of the engine made him drowsy. This, coupled with the fatigue which en-wrapped his body, sent him to sleep before he reached Moya.


	18. Chapter 18

**Part XVIII**

Later on that evening, D'Argo entered the hangar to find John cleaning his module. He loved that ship; he washed it, even when it didn't require washing. Ka understood; it was his one connection with his home planet. The Luxan moved closer. Crichton knew he was there but did not stop to look around.

"John? Could we talk?" he asked cautiously.

For a moment, John did not asnwer, and then, "Yeah, sure D'Argo." He put down the cloth and jumped off the Farscape module. He walked over to the Luxan and waited for him to speak. His hands clutched his waist in his usual pose. On his face was a look of disappointment, disappointment at the way D'Argo had behaved when Enustas had been around. "What?" he asked after a time.

D'Argo had to build himself up to what he was going to say. He didn't often belittle himself like this in front of the human. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for the way I acted because of Enustas."

"Yeah, well I'm sure we all are."

"I don't think you understand. It's been a long time since I had such an interaction with a female. It may have affected my judgement, without the help of the pheromones."

John looked up into D'Argo's eyes. His hardy expression weakened, until he displayed a look of sympathy. He knew where the Luxan was coming from. He had not had such an experience for a long time either. Sometimes it affected sensible decision making; he knew this. "I know D'Argo." He moved right up to his friend and put his hand around his broad shoulders. "It's all right man. I could have happened to anyone."

There was the sound of whirring from outside the door. John looked around to see Rygel on his 'throne', approaching him. "A perfect case and point," he told D'Argo.

The Hynerian had a look of anger upon his toad-like face. "Crichton! You killed the woman I loved!" He pulled a small knife out from inside his gown. "Now _you_ must die!"

He was about to charge when Zhaan entered the room behind Rygel. She approached from behind and uttered his name. He turned to see the point of a syringe heading for his torso. Zhaan injected the antidote, before pulling it out and slapping the Hynerian around the face with such force, that he was knocked out.

John looked up at Zhaan with a look of apparent fear on his face. "Thanks for that."

"Anytime John."


	19. Chapter 19

**Part XIX**

An arn or two later, John entered Aeryn's room, after hearing that her condition had improved significantly. She looked to be asleep, but her eyes opened when he knelt down beside her bed. She smiled at him. "You saved me again, against all the odds."

"Yeah, well don't start telling me that you owe me one. I still owe you plenty."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

John grabbed one of her hands and held it in his. "I thought I'd lost you again!" he exclaimed, quietly, tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

"You never answered me before. Could you have killed me, had the time come?"

John looked into her eyes, thinking about what he had told himself earlier on. Being thrust into the situation again, of Aeryn being on the verge of 'living-death', had been painful indeed. He could not decide what he would have done, had the worst come to the worst. "I still don't have an answer for you."


End file.
